Musings on gratitude

Gratitude!

Have you given some thought to the importance of gratitude – the art of being grateful, thankful, showing appreciation for a kindness shared? The words ‘Thank You’ are so important and still we often forget how important they are and today I’d like to encourage anyone reading this piece to find some way to demonstrate your gratitude to someone close to you, a child who will show much gratitude in return as well as learn from your example, or even to someone you barely know who deserves to have their actions appreciated. This morning, as I do a couple of times each week, I shared a short time with my neighbor, Kevin, at a little ‘hole-in-the-wall’ Mexican restaurant. We take turns (informally) picking up the check which is not very much and on this day it was my turn to pay the bill while he covered the tip for our waitress. We chatted on our ways to our vehicles and parted – he to go to his work, I to go home. I wasn’t even two miles down the road when my phone rang – it was Kevin: “I was so busy talking, I forgot to thank you for buying our Tacos!” Imagine that – what a nice gesture! So, do you say thank you often and to many people? I remember a story I used long ago to make this point of being grateful for even the littlest things. Seems there was a family who owned a cow and during a special time she gave more milk than her family could use and that family recognized that down the road, on their way to work, lived a very poor family. “We get extra milk every morning and every evening, would you like to have the extra milk? We could drop it off on our way to work.” The poor family was ecstatic at this benevolent gift from a neighbor. Then, there came a time when the man with the cow was laid off and instead of driving to work, he worked at home. The poor neighbors were told that they could still have the milk, but that they would have to come to get it. They were just incensed – the audacity, they said, that this rich family could no longer drop the milk off at their place and they refused to get it for themselves. And, then there are some who will say ‘thank you’ for every little kindness shown. As in this story which I’ve repeated many times and at times have been asked the point of the story – you won’t have to ask that. “Some neighbors of my grandparents’ gave them a pumpkin pie as a holiday gift. As lovely as the gesture was, it was clear from the first bite that the pie tasted bad. It was so inedible that my grandmother had to throw it away. Ever gracious and tactful, she still felt obliged to send the neighbors a note. It read “Thank you very much for the pumpkin pie. Something like that doesn’t last very long in our house.”– Krista Rose. So, my challenge to you today is that you’ll use the words ‘Thank You’ at least twice during this day and if you go well beyond twice, give yourself a pat on the back – you deserve more than that!! Thanks for listening! and, have a great day!

One Response to “Musings on gratitude”

I still remember to this day, I’m 66 now, but the story goes back to when I was 15, 1964. The Minister from our church at that time was a young man of about 40 years old,
Reverend Harold Oechsle. Harrold had takened 5 or 6 of us in his Rambler Station wagon to a movie. After the movie, he took us through a drive up to order food. When I heard the attendant say to Harold, “Can I help you?” I heard Harold say “Yes you may!” in a gentle, chipper voice. Know if I was that atterndent, those words of that response would have brought a delight to my heart! I still carry that memory to this day, passing words of praise and affirmation on to other human beings I come in contact.
Now, here it is 2013, and I’ve yet to contract Harold to thank him for that legacy that still lives in my heart today! I WILL CONTACT Harold today and give a thank you to him.
So as Jim Kern says, take that challenge from above. You will be blessed many times for years to come. I know, I’ve been there many times!!
Please share your stories with of graditude!
Wendell